Early numbers show enrollment gains at APSU

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Emily Crain, a Stewart County native, arrived at
Austin Peay State University last month as part of a wave of new graduate students
who are helping bolster the University’s enrollment. She picked APSU as the place
to earn her master’s degree in school counseling because she believes the University
will prepare her to make a difference in the lives of young men and women.

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Emily Crain, a Stewart County native, arrived at
Austin Peay State University last month as part of a wave of new graduate students
who are helping bolster the University’s enrollment. She picked APSU as the place
to earn her master’s degree in school counseling because she believes the University
will prepare her to make a difference in the lives of young men and women.

“I went into school counseling because a lot of kids don’t feel comfortable
talking to their parents and teachers, and I hope to instill an open door policy so
they feel comfortable talking to me,” she said.

According to early enrollment figures, Crain isn’t alone in putting her
faith in APSU. After 14 days of classes, the University is reporting a 6 percent increase
in its graduate student enrollment.

“That’s an excellent effort by our graduate admissions team,” APSU President
Alisa White said. “We have quality and unique graduate programs that are attractive
to prospective students, and our graduate admissions team is continuing to work at
marketing those programs.”

The early numbers also show increases in freshmen, transfer and dual enrollment
students at APSU. The University’s official enrollment won’t be known until November,
when numbers come in from APSU’s Fort Campbell campus.

But at a time when schools across the country are struggling to attract
new students, Austin Peay’s Clarksville campus appears to be breaking from that trend.
That campus saw a 3.6 percent increase in new freshmen, a 6.1 percent increase in
new transfer students and a 13.27 percent increase in dual enrollment of high-achieving
high school students.

White believes students like Crain are continuing to pick APSU because
they believe in the University’s core values, which are represented by the new marketing
slogan, “BE A GOV!”

“What does that mean?” White asked. “To me, it means we care about students,
we care about our community and we care about one another. So from how we go about
fulfilling our mission and reaching our goals to building our community, everything
we do stems from caring about people and things outside of ourselves.”

The University has earned a national reputation in recent years with publications
like The New York Times and The Chronicle of Higher Education praising the school’s
use of technology to make sure students succeed. This reputation is also helping APSU
grow in enrollment at both the Clarksville and Fort Campbell campuses by assisting
its new recruitment efforts to reach beyond its regional undergraduate base.

“We are going after new populations of students,” Beverly Boggs, associate
provost for Enrollment Management and Academic Support, said. “In addition to bringing
in new freshmen, we are working aggressively to add more out-of-state and international
students to our campuses to interact and learn with our existing student population.”

APSU’s official enrollment numbers will be available in early November,
after the 14th day of classes for the Fall II semester at the Fort Campbell campus.